Play Ball
by Diary
Summary: Austin visits his cousin, Sebastian, in Ohio. He ends up hanging out with Dave Karofsky. Complete.


Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Ugly Betty.

…

"I'm not a little kid, anymore," Austin insists, hating how petulant he sounds. "I don't need a babysitter."

He especially doesn't need to spend the majority of his time in Ohio with his arrogant jerk of a cousin. Like the rest of his family, Sebastian Smythe is disdainful of Austin's family. Where Austin's dad is proud of their Irish heritage and his job as a cop, Sebastian's side of the family refuses to acknowledge their Irish heritage and often makes subtle barbs towards how little Austin's dad supposedly makes.

Yeah, his dad isn't rich, but they're not poor, either.

"C'mon, kiddo," his dad says, sighing. "With what happened last time-" He trails off.

What happened last time, the thing Austin refuses to talk about. He'd met a cute boy, hung out with him, and some bigger boys had surrounded them; nothing had happened due to a his dad's friend, Burt, showing up earlier than expected, but he knows what could have happened, knows what those boys were capable of doing.

"Dad, I'll stay in the hotel," he says, frowning at the thought. "I don't want to be stuck in that private school while all of Sebastian's friends sing songs and dance around."

"I thought you were getting interested in show choir."

"Unless Sebastian can give me enough trivia to beat Justin, no. I still think it's stupid."

Austin loves watching musicals, and he loves acting. He supposes if a person really loves singing and dancing and doesn't want to perform on their own, show choir's good for them, but he's not good at either. He doesn't have much interest in watching people try to be the better singing and/or acting group.

Justin loves show choir, though, and is always sprouting of facts about it. So, naturally, Austin has a moral obligation to try to out-trivia him.

Unfortunately, it's not working that well.

"Austin, please," his dad says. "It's just for three days, four, at the most. I'm not above resorting to bribery."

"I might have a boyfriend by now."

Making a small sound, his dad sits down beside him, slinging his arm over Austin's shoulders. "I know, and if there's another boy, we can definitely try to make plans around it. No matter how long you wait, those embarrassing baby pictures will be shown, one day. But I can't risk you getting hurt."

"Dad, you're not showing my baby pictures to my future boyfriend."

"Keep telling yourself that."

Shaking his head, Austin says, "And what's Sebastian going to do if more boys like that show up? Give them a snappy speech that has them running home in tears?"

"Well," his dad says, thoughtfully, "maybe. Your cousin is really good at snappy speeches."

Sighing, Austin says, "Fine. But if there is another boy, and Sebastian does something to ruin it, I'll find out where his embarrassing baby pictures are, steal them, and show them to his music class."

…

"Don't they have coffee at Dalton?"

"I prefer the coffee here," Sebastian answers, smirking at the bubble tea and cookies in Austin's hands.

"You're as bad as Justin," Austin mutters, darkly. "Ever since his mom started letting him drink coffee, he's turned into an addict."

"Is Justin your boyfriend?"

"I don't have a boyfriend," he says, harsher than he means to. Sebastian's had two boyfriends, and Austin's never even had one. His first kiss was him misreading signals and ending up with a bloody nose, followed by him having to eventually drop out of his old drama class.

Sounding way too amused, Sebastian inquires, "Do you want him to be your boyfriend?"

"He's straight, and he's in love with our best friend, Lily."

"That wasn't what I asked."

He starts to say that he's not going after a straight boy but realises that that would be implying a 'yes'. "Of course not," he answers, feeling his stomach sink. "We fight over everything, and he always says that I have an odd face."

"Straight boys don't generally comment on the state of other boy's faces," Sebastian replies.

"Well, he's definitely in love with Lily, whatever he is."

Sebastian starts to say something, but his phone interrupts. Digging it out, he answers while Austin concentrates on his cookies.

"He did what?"

Suddenly, Sebastian's voice is cold and hard, and Austin looks up, bewildered.

"I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

Snapping the phone shut, Sebastian stands up, ordering, "Come on; I'm taking you to Hummel's shop."

"What's going on? Is everyone okay," Austin asks, gathering his cookies and drinks. "Wait, doesn't Uncle Burt hate you?"

Austin still isn't sure what the whole story is, but apparently, Sebastian did something to some boy who's dating Kurt, Burt's son. Austin's only met Kurt a few times, never for long enough to really get to know him. He always seemed okay, if a little bossy.

So, yeah, that's an awkward mess of family relationships and friendships.

"It doesn't matter," Sebastian answers, digging his keys out.

Then, he pauses for a moment, and Austin follows his eyes. At the counter is a big boy in a polo shirt, and before Austin can ask who he is, he finds himself being dragged over. "Karofsky, thank God," Sebastian says. "I need a favour."

The boy- Austin has absolutely no idea how to pronounce his name- looks startled. Before he can say anything, Sebastian continues, "This is Austin Fitzgerald, my younger cousin. I have to go to jail, and then, I have to find out if the current hate crime laws cover Muslims. Watch him for an hour or two; it shouldn't take long."

The boy looks as confused as Austin feels.

"Dude- I have therapy in fifteen minutes."

"Whatever. Austin, talk to his therapist and tell her David isn't a danger to himself. You," he points to David –finally, a name Austin can pronounce-, "don't do anything to traumatise my cousin. I'll either kill you or find a shaman to bring you back from the dead so that I can torture you."

"Wait, there are shamans in Ohio? Why didn't Dad tell me? I need to-" He blinks, realising Sebastian is gone.

David is looking at him in absolute confusion.

Sighing, hoping David, who looks a lot like those boys who surrounded him last time, isn't as scary as he looks, Austin gives him a tentative grin.

…

After David has made a phone call, he sits down, blowing on his coffee. "So," he says, almost desperately, "you're, like, into shamans and stuff?"

Despite his confusion and slight fear, Austin feels himself getting excited. "I love paranormal stuff! And I know aliens are real. Everyone thinks I'm crazy, but how else do you explain things like the Bermuda triangle and Stonehenge? Have you seen Ancient Aliens? They make some really interesting points."

"No, I haven't," David answers, looking a little less frantic, though still just as confused. "I'm Dave Karofsky. Your cousin and I sometimes talk when we're at the same club. Does he usually leave you with whoever's around that he sort of knows?"

"This is the first time he's ever done it," Austin answers. "I'm sorry about that. Um, if you could find a way to get me to Hummel's Tire and Lube Shop, I can hang out there. My dad is best friends with the owner, Burt Hummel."

Suddenly, Dave looks really pale.

"Are you okay?"

Sighing heavily, Dave answers, "Yeah, I'm fine. Look, I don't have money for cab fare. I can either drive you there, or you can call someone and I can wait until they come to get you."

…

"You aren't coming in?"

"No."

Austin looks at him curiously. "Just tell me if I need to mind my own business, but are you okay? Uncle Burt's really cool, and I am sorry about Sebastian."

"Burt Hummel is your uncle? What does that make Sebastian to Kurt?"

"Nothing. Dad and Uncle Burt have been friends since I was a little kid; Sebastian's dad is my dad's second or third cousin, but they're pretty close in age."

"Look," Dave says, quietly, "not to freak you out, but I used to bully Kurt. Badly. And he's forgiven me, but his dad hasn't. I don't want to cause any trouble."

It's probably a good idea to leave it at that, thank Dave, and go in.

He doesn't think Sebastian, whether he actually cares about him or not, would leave him with just someone he occasionally talks to, though. There must be something about Dave that Sebastian likes or, at least, trusts enough to make sure Austin is okay so that Sebastian doesn't get into trouble.

Plus, Dave just looks so sad.

"You could probably change that if you came in," he says, tentatively. "The last time I was here, some boys surrounded me and some other guy that I was hanging out with. Nothing happened, but that's only because Uncle Burt came to pick me up earlier than he was supposed to. That's why I was hanging out with Sebastian; he's supposed to play babysitter."

"Let me guess: You're gay, too?"

"Well, I'm not out to convert you," Austin says, defensively. "That guy and I didn't even get to kiss. And if you have a problem with gay people, um, I think I might need to see if Sebastian somehow has multiple personalities. He's not a stereotype, but he's already checked out three different guys, and it's not even lunchtime. I can only imagine what he's like in clubs."

Oh, crap.

If Austin managed to just out he's cousin, he's going to have to kill himself. There are some things people are never supposed to do, and no matter how unsubtle Sebastian is, if he doesn't want someone to know, Austin has no right to tell them.

"Relax," Dave says, sounding torn between amusement and a general 'what-is-my-life'. "I'm gay, too. That's one of the reasons I was so brutal with Kurt."

"Because you liked him?"

"Yeah. I just- couldn't be gay."

"Come with me," Austin orders. "I'll protect you."

"Dude, you're practically a baby."

"I'm only about three years younger than you."

…

"Karofsky."

"Hi, Uncle Burt," Austin says. "Sebastian got a phone call, and I'm not sure what's going on, but he left me at the Lima Bean. Dave brought me here."

His uncle, who'd been looking at Dave with a determinedly neutral expression, seems to soften. To Austin, he asks, "You alright, buddy?"

He nods.

"Thank you," Burt says, awkwardly. "I'll-"

"Dad, I-" Kurt bursts into the room, and Austin watches as he and Dave take one another in. Kurt looks worried but not scared, and Dave- Dave liking Kurt isn't a past tense thing. He still has a huge crush on him. "David. Are you okay?"

…

After everything is explained, Austin goes to the bathroom and comes back to hear Kurt and Dave talking. Staying back, he listens.

"Doctor Lexington was cool about it, but I don't know how to explain this to everyone else. They're all going to think I just decided to skip."

"I'm sure Sebastian would be decent enough to-"

"Maybe, but that would require him being- with him talking to them. My mom hates him, my dad doesn't trust him, and I'm not sure how my cousins feel about him. Jamie seems to like him, but he bought a soda for him, once. He could be a serial killer, and Jamie would still like him."

"Are we absolutely sure he isn't?"

"I'm not defending what he did," Dave says, quietly, "but if it means anything, I really think he's changed."

Austin wonders what exactly Sebastian did do. He's never been very interested in anything his older cousin did, but he's starting to see him in a semi-interesting light.

"I'm glad that he's been a good friend to you," Kurt says, softly. "If you want, I'll talk to your family for you."

"Thanks."

"So- I'm not trying to get you to leave, but if you want to go, that's fine. Me and dad can look out for Austin until Sebastian is done with whatever he's doing."

Austin comes in and sits down. "I tried calling Sebastian," he tells them. "His voice mail told me he was busy plotting a murder. Is that normal?"

"It is when he's pissed and trying to fix a mistake someone made," Dave answers. "Don't worry; it's probably something like one of the Warblers arguing with a police officer over a ticket and getting arrested."

"Officers aren't supposed to arrest people for stuff like that. If they have the driver's license number, they let the person go and submit a report at the station."

"They might do that in New York for safety reasons, but here in Ohio, a person can be arrested for almost anything," Kurt says, dryly. "I think Finn has some episodes of Jake 2.0. Or we could go to the park while you practise your baseball skills; I'm afraid I won't be much help, but maybe there will be someone there who can be."

"You play baseball?"

"I'm hoping to," Austin answers. "Last year, I played basketball, and I liked it, but I want to try something different. Uh, I hate most of the boys on my school's football team, so I'm thinking that might not be a good idea. My dad played baseball in high school, and he's been teaching me."

"If you want, I could help you practise," Dave offers. "I never played on the school team, but during the summer, we'd have neighbourhood matches."

"That'd be cool."

"Oh, thank God," Kurt says. "I don't have to cancel with Blaine. Thank you, David. Austin, call Sebastian to tell him where you'll be, and if you need anything, call me or Dad."

"Got it," he says, guessing by the brief expression that crossed Dave's face that Blaine is Kurt's boyfriend.

…

"It's not funny," Austin mumbles, pinching his bleeding nose. "Is this going to last more than a few days? If so, I need to make up some kind of excuse."

"What's wrong with the truth?"

Leaning forward, Austin carefully takes the toilet paper away from his nose, relieved to see the bleeding has seemed to stop. He's a decent batter and catcher, but apparently, God hates pitchers. Or he just hates Austin's attempts at it.

Yeah, that probably makes more sense, seeing as how there are plenty of successful pitchers who don't manage to give themselves bloody noses and possible black eyes.

"My friend, Justin," he answers. "We're in the same drama class together, and we're kind of rivals. He'll definitely never let me live this down."

"You're learning how to play baseball; I don't get how that can be embarrassing."

"He calls the basketball hoop 'that circle-thingy'."

Dave laughs. "Not a big sports fan?"

"No; he played soccer when he was younger, but I think that was mostly because they let him colour his uniform. But he's really talented, though. He's does the best monologues, and the way he can recite Shakespeare without stumbling or mispronouncing any of the words is awesome and actually a little creepy." Sighing, he adds, "He likes our other friend, Lily, and he thinks that I do, too."

"He doesn't know that you're gay?"

Shrugging, Austin looks down at the ground, kicking a rock. "Justin's- Justin is sort of like Kurt. He loves clothes, and there's the whole love of acting and music thing. But he likes Lily, and he had a girlfriend when he was younger."

"I think I might be missing something."

"He was bullied, too," Austin says, quietly, leaning back. "There was this football player who loved musicals, and he and Justin bonded over that. But then, he hurt Justin. I mean, not physically, he just yelled at him and refused to be his friend anymore. Then, he was elected Prom Queen."

Dave turns pale, again. "That sucks," he says, softly.

"Yeah. One day, I was talking to Lily about something sports-related, and he freaked out. He left the room, and when I found him, he told me about boys never wanting to be his friend because they thought he was gay. And then, he told me that he wasn't gay. I didn't ask, wasn't even planning on it. The way he said it- it was like he thought there was something wrong with it."

Lily has a gay sister, and Justin's never seemed to have any problem with that, but what if a gay boy is different?

Reaching over, Dave pats his shoulder. "Come on; we came to play baseball, not for you to realise how much your life sometimes sucks."

Grinning, Austin nods.

"I don't know if this'll work, but we can try visualisation techniques." Handing the ball to Austin, he says, "This ball is something very important to your boy Justin, and it's breakable. Make sure I catch it."

"What if that doesn't work?"

"Then, you thank God he's in another state, and we try something different."

…

By the time Sebastian shows up, Austin has managed to get the hang of throwing in Dave's general direction, and he's only managed to give himself another potential black eye and a loose tooth.

Sebastian takes one look at him, sighs, and sits down on the bench. "It turns out that Muslims are protected under the current hate crime laws. Until I learn how to make it look like suicide, Thad will live another day." He pauses, briefly glancing over at Dave, and then, reaches out to trace the bruises on Austin's face. "Let's hope Justin isn't a catcher," he says, dryly.

"I don't think Justin likes baseball," Austin answers, wincing slightly. "I've almost gotten to where I can throw it straight each time."

"Good for you. Go get me a bottle of water," he says, withdrawing his wallet.

Rolling his eyes, Austin leaves, stopping once he's out of sight.

"Thank you for watching him. I definitely owe you a drink."

"You owe me a lot more than that," Dave snaps. "What in the Hell, Smythe? You left a fifteen-year-old kid with me. Do you secretly hate him or something?"

"Aside from the self-inflicted injuries, he seems to have come out unscathed."

"Do you have any real idea what I've done? Let's start with shoving a kid who used to be shorter and skinnier than your cousin into lockers and end with his father having to pay money he didn't have to send him to your school. Oh, and that's just the things most people know about."

"Give yourself credit," Sebastian answers, sounding completely unaffected by Dave's emotional tone. "For one thing, no one seems to have any issues with you routinely babysitting your prepubescent cousin. Second, this self-recrimination borders on martyrdom. He had fun, and he was safe. I probably would have hated you if I knew you when you were a closeted rage case, but guess what? I didn't, and I'm not going judge my actions involving you on this guy I never knew. Now, help me find my cousin; it shouldn't take this long to get some water."

Austin quickly leaves as Dave thankfully makes the point that he (Austin) is probably in the bathroom.

…

"Ow."

"You did make it clear that this is all from baseball, right," Dave asks, carefully bring an icepack to Austin's ringing ear.

"I was doing better yesterday."

"Yesterday, I was catching," Dave says, thoughtfully. "Look, I promise if you throw it so that I can hit it, I won't hurt anyone or anything."

"You aren't the one who's given me two black eyes, a bloody nose, and several bruises," he mutters, setting the icepack down and standing back up.

Picking up the ball, he imagines it's a copy of Anna Karenina. Lily had been assigned a copy of it for a book report, once, and by the end of the week she'd been ready to strangle both him and Justin, muttering about misogynist school administers and absolutely effed up moral messages.

…

"I wonder if there's a way to ship this without it melting," Austin says, digging into the brownie-strawberry ice-cream.

"Dude, it's ice-cream. You can find it anywhere."

"Not this kind," Austin insists with his mouth full. "This has real brownies and strawberry juice; Justin would freak out. Wait," he says, swallowing. "His grandpa's a professional chief; do you think I could get the recipe?"

"We can ask," Dave says, shaking his head and looking far too amused.

Austin does the mature thing and sticks his tongue out.

"Hey, Karofsky."

Suddenly, a girl is sitting down.

"Lopez," Dave says, while the girl gives Austin a measuring look. "This is Sebastian's cousin, Austin Fitzgerald. Austin, this is Santana Lopez. That thing about not hitting girls? If you ever find yourself alone in an alley with her, forget it, hit as hard as you can, and run as fast as you can."

"The meerkat has a cousin?"

"Hi," Austin says, offering his hand. "Meerkat?"

"Oh, this is too precious," Santana says, grinning as she shakes his hand. "Better not let a certain penguin see him, Karofsky, or-"

"He knows Kurt," Dave says, somewhat abruptly. "Their dads are friends, and he got those injuries from trying to learn how to pitch."

"Penguin?"

Santana's amusement seems to grow. She makes a small sound. "That's why you're babysitting, isn't it? Gorillas are one of the-"

"I'm not babysitting. He's fifteen, and as long as it doesn't involve throwing a ball, he can take care of himself."

"Hey," Austin protests.

Laughing, Santana reaches over and swipes her finger through his ice-cream, which Austin isn't sure if that's healthy or not. "Do you have a girlfriend, sweetie?"

Dave rolls his eyes, and Austin answers, "Um, I'm gay. And no, I don't have a boyfriend, either."

Shaking her head, Santana leans over and kisses Dave on the cheek. "I'll call you, later." Standing, she tells Austin, "Next time, use sunscreen. It sounds like it shouldn't work, but it does help gingers prevent bruising."

Before Austin can point out he's not technically a redhead, more of an auburn, she's gone.

"Is she-"

"That was Santana," Dave says, shaking his head. "We're alive, and no mob is attacking us. Don't overthink it."

"Is she your friend?"

"I guess," Dave says. "She's a lesbian, and we pretended to date once. You know, she and your cousin also got into a singing duel."

"Really? Who won?"

"They didn't have a judge."

He should probably have more family loyalty than this, but Austin kind of hopes Santana won. "So," he says, finishing his ice-cream and grinning, "where can we get some sunscreen?"

"Let's see about that recipe, first."

…

Sebastian laughs when Austin looks up.

"Shut up," Austin mutters, making room for his cousin on the couch. "I'll definitely make batter when I try out."

"Yes, but in the meantime, your poor father is going to have to go through airport security with you looking like this," Sebastian says, withdrawing some stuff from his briefcase. "Here. This'll sting at first, but it'll keep your face numb for a few hours. When I first started playing Lacrosse, I was constantly hitting myself in the stomach with the crosse."

"Ouch," Austin says, sympathetically, unable to keep himself from chuckling.

"It seems like you had more fun than you usually do when you come down here," Sebastian comments, pressing a wipe against Austin's left cheek.

"Dave's awesome!"

At his cousin's smirk, Austin rolls his eyes. "Well, he is. I learned some cool techniques that are really helpful from him. And he helped me find a present for Justin."

"Oh?"

Nodding, wincing as he does so, Austin says, "I got some scented candles for Lily, but I wasn't sure what to do about him. Kurt makes most of the scarves he has, and I wasn't going to ask him to make one for Justin. That would be weird, wouldn't it?" When Sebastian doesn't answer, he continues, "But his grandpa loves to cook and make things, and we found this ice-cream with real strawberry juice and brownies in it. Dave convinced the manager to give me the recipe; we had to sign some forms, though."

"Good," Sebastian says, softly.

For a minute, Austin debates whether he wants to ask or not. Finally, he says, tentatively, "Sebastian? Do you like him? I mean- do you have a crush on him?"

"A crush? No; that would utterly ruin my reputation," Sebastian answers, amused. "But yes, I do like him, very much."

"Why? You call him by his last name, and you don't seem to be that close to him."

"Mainly for selfish reasons," his cousin answers, bluntly. "I've done some stupid things. Things I'm not proud of. And if I started doing them again, I know that Karofsky would call me on it, but when he and I have a drink together, I don't feel like he's counting down the minutes until I resume my previous illicit behaviour."

"I don't even know what all you've done."

Sebastian is quiet for a long moment, and then, there's a knock at the door.

"Hey, Karofsky," Sebastian says, glancing over. "Austin leaves in an hour, and you're not taking him to the park. He already has more than enough injuries to take home."

Rolling his eyes, Austin reaches over and pushes Sebastian's head. Standing up, he grins at Dave. "Thanks for hanging out with me."

"No problem," Dave answers, giving him a small smile. Holding out a piece of paper, he says, "Here. This is my phone number and email address. If you ever need something or just want to talk, call me, okay?"

Taking out his cell phone, Austin enters both. "Thank you." Reaching out, he hugs Dave.

There's a moment of hesitation, and then, he feels Dave returning the hug. Despite his not-quite numb face, it's a great feeling. "Take care of yourself, kid," Dave says, a hand trailing through Austin's hair.

…

Author's Notes: I have no idea if sunscreen can actually help prevent non-sun related bruising in anyone, let alone redheads. Do not take that as a fact. For some reason, Santana saying that just popped into my head, and since she canonically has a habit of saying things that may or may not be accurate, I went with it.


End file.
